Mechanism for guiding a burner for cutting metal lengths in continuous casting



19, 1963 H. SCHREWE ET AL MECHANISM FOR GUIDING A BURNER FOR CUTTING METAL LENGTHS IN CONTINUOUS CASTING Filed March 30, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 //7 I/6/7/0l5 Hans Sch/ewe W/Me/m S/eflmac/rer By f/ve/r af/omeys MAM 1963 H. SCHREWE ETAL 3,078,083

- MECHANISM FOR GUIDING A BURNER FOR CUTTING METAL LENGTHS IN CONTINUOUS CASTING Filed March 30, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 //7ve/7f0rs Hans Sch/ewe VV/Me/m S/eflmacher By their af/omeys United States Patent MECHANISM FOR GUIDING A BURNER FOR CUTTING METAL LENGTHS IN CONTIN- UOUS CASTING Hans Schrewe, Duisburg-Ungelsheim, and Wilhelm Stellmacher, Dusseldorf, Germany, assignors to Marinesmann Aktieugesellschaft, Dusseldorf, Germany, a company of Germany Filed Mar. 30, 1960, Ser. No. 13,728 Claims priority, application Germany Apr. 4, 1959 4 Claims. (Cl. 266-23) In the continuous-casting of metals, the cutting apart of the finished casting into sections is of special importance, because this operation has to be carried out to suit the speed of descent of the casting being performed simultaneously with the casting, and usually within a certain and limited distance.

Various mechanisms have heretofore been employed in which one or more burners, or a suitable burner platform, are coupled to a descending length of casting. The burner or burners in this case generally have had a rectiiinear and-uniform cutting path; thatis, they are controlled or guided manually or automatically, regardless of whetherthe cast length is rectangular, or polygonal, or round. It is particularly with cast lengths of round shape that little or no consideration has heretofore been given to the varying depth of cut; that is, the places where the cut is deepest have been cut at the same speed as where the cut depth is least. Thus the cutting apart of round cast lengths has'en'tailed ditficulties when working with the known means. .It was, for example, not possible to cut apart hollow cast lengths with the known means when the inside diameter exceeded a certain dimension, because it is particularly difficult to reach the rear parts of a hollow length for this purpose. Therefore difiiculties were'encountered during the cutting-apart operation and such places usually had to be burned through separately.

The subject of the invention is a linkage system for guiding the burner, particularly in continuous-casting equipment, for the cuttingaapart of polygonal lengths, round lengths, particularly polygonal hollow lengths or round hollow lengths, the linkage system guiding the burner or burner nozzleto suitthe external shape of the cast length, and permitting rear cutting of the cast length. This linkage system. furthermore controls the burner movement in such a way that in the region where the depth of cut is greatest .the burner receives a slower advancing motion, which motion increases in speed where the cut depth is less.

In accordance with the invention the burner, at whose front end the nozzle proper is mounted, is suspended on a linkage system resembling a linked quadrangle or pantograph arrangement and provided with two crank drives, the burner being fastened on a carrier arm or similar element. The two crank drives, which are driven independently of one another, and whose freely movable ends describe different radii, at the beginning of the cutting operation have positions that differ from one another in the frame formed by the linked parallelogram. Their directions of movement, in approximately the first quarter, are in opposite directions. In the second and third quarters they are approximately in the same direction and finally in the fourth quarter are in opposite directions again. These movements effect a guidance of the burner nozzle so that it moves at a practically uniform the burner nozzle so that it moves at a practically uniform spacing from the surface of the cast length. In this way the burner nozzle does not describe regular circular lines. However, this arrangement permits the advance motion i.e., speed of feed or traverse, to be suited to the depth of cut. The speed will be great in the first quarter, small "ice in the second and third quarters, and great again in the last quarter. In the case of hollow cast lengths, this makes it possible to adjust the advance motion or feed, in the region of the greatest depth of cut, so that the rear portions of the cast length are also out part with certainty, where rear cutting has heretofore not taken place.

While retaining the essentials of the pantograph principle and in order to do rear cutting, it is characteristic of the invention that the burner is able to pivot or turn about a fixed point at least and can be displaced to suit the shape of the cast lengths surface, While the nozzle articulated at the front end is turned about an axis transverse to the lengthwise axis of the burner to suit the shape of the cast length and to make rear-cutting possible.

In the drawings FIG. l'is a plan view of an embodiment'according to the invention showing the front end of a carrier arm on which the burner is adapted to rotate about an axis transverse to the lengthwise axis of the burner.

FIG; 2 is a diagrammatic view of the embodiment of FIG. 1 taken with the casting in cross section, and showing the burner in different positions during the cutting operation.

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view similar to FIG. 2 but of another embodiment in which a servo motor turns the burner about an axis transverse to the lengthwise axis.

the front end of a shaft 26, which also carries a bevel gear wheel 39, that cooperates with a ring gear 32 that is disposed fixedly on the under side of the front crank drive 34, which engages with the carrier arm at the pivot point 36. By suitably dimensioning the transmission ratio of the drive elements that have been mentioned, and a common drive, with practically equal lengths of the crank arms 34 and 38 (FIG. 2), a turning of the burner 22 is obtained such that it runs at practically uniform spacing from the surface of the cast length 11 (-FIG. 2). In this case the crank arms move in the same direction during the cutting operation. However, it is so arranged that in .its initial and final positions a rear cutting is effected. FIG. 2 also shows the different positions of the carrier arm 20 and the burner 22 with respect to the cast length.

FIG. 3 shows a different kind of construction of the invention. The carrier arm 2% in this case is guided slidably and pivotally about a rear point 202-. The motion of the carrier arm is obtained by means of a motor (not illustrated), and the guidance relatively to the surface of the cast length 11 is obtained by means of a crank drive 206, which is arranged so that it is able to turn on what is to be regarded as a stationary centerline 204. This drive engages by means of a longitudinal slot 208 and associated rollers 210 with a guide pin (not illustrated) on the under side of the carrier arm 200.

At the front end of the carrier arm 260 is provided a burner 212 that is able to turn about an axis transverse to the burner axis, and that in the present case is turned by means of a specially provided servo-motor 214 disposed on the carrier arm 200. The motion of the burner 212 could naturally also be produced by a connected rack drive (as described for FIG. 1), by the aid of the crank drive 206 and a suitable transmission ratio.

FIG. 3 shows the other different positions assumed by the burner nozzle of this embodiment during the cutting operation. From the course of the cutting operation it is evident that it is also possible to reach and cut off with reliability the rear parts of a polygonal length, a round length, or a round hollow length, or polygonal hollow length.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for the guidance of a cutting burner during the cutting of sections transversely off a cast length in a continuous casting process, the combination of;

a system of linkage having at least two links, one of them being a carrier arm, said links being movably connected together, at least two of said links being movable each around separated fixed points, said points being on a line coincident with a lengthwise axis of the carrier arm midway in its movement during cutting, and

a burner having a nozzle on one end, and being carried by the carrier arm at the other end of the burner, which is rotatable thereabout an axis transverse to the lengthwise axis of the burner to a point'at least 45 on both sides of an extension of the lengthwise axis of the carrier arm when viewed in plan, and

drive means connected to at least one link for moving the said system and thereby the carrier arm and burner across the cast length, and

rotating means, connected to the burner and to said drive means, said rotating means being for rotating the burner according to the position of the carrier arm in its movement across the cast length during cutting,

the combination being so constructed and arranged that during cutting the attitude of the burner nozzle to the surface of the cast length is varied to permit cutting of first one rear portion of said length then a front portion and then another rear portion, the burner nozzle being kept all the while at substantially a uniform distance from the surface of said length whereby, the rear as well as the front portions of the cast length are cut with certainty.

2. Apparatus for the guidance of a cutting burner during the cutting of sections transversely off a cast length in a continuous casting process, said apparatus comprising the combination of;

a system of linkage having at least two links movably connected together, one of them being a carrier arm and at least one having the form of a crank arm, at least two of the links being movable, each around separated fixed points in the linkage system said points being on a line coincident with a lengthwise axis of the carrier arm midway in its movement during cutting, and

a burner, having a nozzle on one end, and being carried by .the carrier arm at the other end of the burner, which is rotatable there about an axis transverse to the lengthwise axis of the burner to a point at least 45 on either side of an extension of the lengthwise axis of the carrier arm when viewed in plan, and

drive means connected to at least one link having the form of a crank arm, said drive means being for moving the linkage system and thereby the carrier arm and burner across the cast length, and

'rotating means, connected to the burner, mounted on the carrier arm and'connected to said drive means, said rotating means being for rotating the burner according to the position, of the carrier arm in .its movement across the cast length during cutting,

the combination being so constructed and arranged that during cutting the attitude of the burner nozzle to the surface of the cast length is varied to permit cutting of first one rear portion of said length then a front portion and then another rear portion, the burner nozzle being kept, all the while, at substantially a uniform distance from the surface of said length,

whereby the rear as well as the front portions of the cast length are cut with certainty.

3. A combination according to claim 2 characterized by the burner being arranged on one end of the carrier arm, a second crank arm being in the linkage system, with both crank arms being connected to the carrier arm at separated movable points each crank arm also pivoting around one of the separated fixed points, and the rotating means comprising a servo-motor mounted on the carrier arm.

4. A combination according to claim 2 characterized by the burner being arranged on one end of the carrier arm, the carrier arm being slidably pivoted about one end of the crank arm which is pivoted about one of the fixed points, the rotating means comprising a servo-motor mounted on the carrier arm, and the connection of the crank arm to the carrier arm comprising a longitudinal slot in the crank arm and associated rollers on the carrier arm so that rotation of the crank arm causes the carrier arm to slide over and pivot around the other fixed point.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,687,001 Bishop Oct. 9, 1928 2,054,847 Anderson Sept. 22, 1936 2,347,804 Anderson May 2, 1944 2,419,983 Anderson May 6, 1947 2,477,108 Young July 26, 1949 

1. IN AN APPARATUS FOR THE GUIDANCE OF A CUTTING BURNER DURING THE CUTTING OF SECTIONS TRANSVERSELY OFF A CAST LENGTH IN A CONTINUOUS CASTING PROCESS, THE COMBINATION OF; A SYSTEM OF LINKAGE HAVING AT LEAST TWO LINKS, ONE OF THEM BEING A CARRIER ARM, SAID LINKS BEING MOVABLY CONNECTED TOGETHER, AT LEAST TWO OF SAID LINKS BEING MOVABLE EACH AROUND SEPARATED FIXED POINTS, SAID POINTS BEING ON A LINE COINCIDENT WITH A LENGTHWISE AXIS OF THE CARRIER ARM MIDWAY IN ITS MOVEMENT DURING CUTTING, AND A BURNER HAVING A NOZZLE ON ONE END, AND BEING CARRIED BY THE CARRIER ARM AT THE OTHER END OF THE BURNER, WHICH IS ROTATABLE THEREABOUT AN AXIS TRANSVERSE TO THE LENGTHWISE AXIS OF THE BURNER TO A POINT AT LEAST 45* ON BOTH SIDES OF AN EXTENSION OF THE LENGTHWISE AXIS OF THE CARRIER ARM WHEN VIEWED IN PLAN, AND DRIVE MEANS CONNECTED TO AT LEAST ONE LINK FOR MOVING THE SAID SYSTEM AND THEREBY THE CARRIER ARM AND BURNER ACROSS THE CAST LENGTH, AND 